13/01/2012 World News Today

This is BBC World News Today with me Zeinab Badawi.

Could France be about to lose its triple A credit rating? President

Sarkozy holds crisis talks with ministers, as fears mount that the

downgrade could place further pressure on the eurozone.

Is the Pakistani government on a dangerous collision course with the

military? Growing public tension but government ministers play down

talk of a political crisis. you're referring to the recent

whatever is going on in the country. It will not affect. In democracy we

are in transition. So ups and downs will be there.

Day five of protests in Nigeria over the scrapping of the fuel

subsidy. Now the government makes an offer to the unions. Will it be

enough? Also coming up in the programme,

the increasing danger posed by space debris. The Russian space

craft Phobos-Grunt should come crashing back to earth this weekend

Hello and welcome. The value of the euro has fallen

with more bad news for the eurozone. France is braced this evening for

the possibility that its credit rating may be downgraded by the

Standard & Poor's agency. Nicolas Sarkozy is reported to be in crisis

talks with his ministers ahead of expected announcement. Fears over

the eurozone debt crisis have also been heightened with talks between

Greece and the banks it owes money to breaking down. Our chief

economics correspondent Hugh Pym reports.

2011 was the year to the good for the eurozone and the health of the

single currency. Riots increase other government was facing

crippling debts and tried to impose spending cuts and tensions over how

to safeguard -- safeguard the euro but another blow is looming, the

downgrading of France's credit rating. If they are downgraded, it

will raise the cost of borrowing at France has to pay to markets. Above

Germany and the UK, which have triple-A ratings, and it will be

more difficult to rescue crew eurozone, although it may still be

possible. Here are the key figures from the French economy which have

worried the markets. Government debt is 90% this year. The deficit,

new borrowing, 5.5%. The French government is currently having to

pay more than 3% to borrow, while at the UK is below 2%. If France's

credit rating is downgraded, the impact could be as much political

as economic. Some see the triple A rating as a badge of national

prestige, and are losing it, critics will argue could be seen as

a major blow to President Sarkozy. In a year when he seeking re-

election. Fears that France might be downgraded emerge before

Christmas as Nicolas Sarkozy's relations with David Cameron cold.

They criticised the UK finances. don't want to be given any lessons.

The economic situation in Great Britain is very worrying and from

an economic standpoint, we would prefer to be French and British.

But its front which is firmly under a financial spotlight this evening.

-- France. Speculation that one up ratings agency will make an

announcement, and with talks with private investors and the Greek

government over how to manage the burden having broken down, a

familiar cloud is hovering over the eurozone.

Let's talk more about this. Matthew price joins us. Does this look like

it's going to happen? It's the sense we getting from French

government officials. In the last few minutes, the French agency, AFP,

is reporting yes, indeed, France is being downgraded by Standard & Poor

and it fits with the general assumption, the general words

coming out of Standard & Poor, the ratings agency, in the last few

months, but they put France on a downgrade and add some point,

expected they would do this. Yes, it looks like this is happening.

Matthew, it's not just the fact it's been downgraded. It is the

extent, the amount by which it has downgraded, which is also important

for country. Absolutely. If France get downgraded at the next couple

of hours, by one are not, it is manageable. It is difficult

politically for President Sarkozy. And economically, it will almost

certainly make a change. It will force up the French borrowing rate.

It to probably wouldn't be catastrophic. It did get downgraded

by two notches, you start to get into more uncertain territory, not

just for France, but remember they are one of the key economic backers

of the eurozone's current temporary rescue fund, but BFSS, and France

is the second biggest backer of that fund. Germany is the biggest.

That fund has so far also had a triple A rating. There are those

concerned in Brussels tonight that if France gets downgrade it, so too

will the euro zones temporary bail- out fund, and therefore that, too,

will pile on the pressure. I can say that the wires have confirmed,

according to the French finance minister, France indeed has lost

its triple-A credit. That is indeed quite a blow to the country. It's

not just an economic matter, but huge political tests for President

Sarkozy. Ahead of this, but it's going to have shockwaves throughout

the eurozone that such a major economy in the eurozone has lost

its triple-A rating. Absolutely. The second biggest economy in the

eurozone. One of the biggest economies in the world. Also, not

just economically important within the eurozone, but vitally

politically important as well. President Sarkozy and Angela Merkel

had basically been a leading the way in terms of how Europe gets out

of this mess. I think, what has been interesting, the French have

been trying to bring in austerity measures that they felt they could

get past the public in the run-up to the French elections in April

and May. Measures they felt could get past the French public which

would not be terribly unpopular, which wouldn't necessarily stop

President Sarkozy getting re- elected but the same time, would

satisfy the market and it clear I have not satisfied one of the

ratings agencies. Matthew, thank you very much, with that news that

France has lost its triple A credit rating.

The political temperature in Pakistan is nearing boiling point.

On Monday the ruling party faces a confidence vote. The prime minister

Yusuf Raza Gilani told parliament it had to choose between democracy

and dictatorship. A series of public disputes has brought

relations between the government and the military to an all-time low.

The Supreme Court could also get involved, with a deadline looming

for the government to re-open political corruption cases. Here's

A nation gripped by a political crisis. They have fallen heroes.

The funerals today for two Pakistani policemen. Killed by

militants. As well as battling that enemy, the government here is

locked in conflict with the army and the Supreme Court. At

Parliament, another crisis session. But Pakistan's Interior Minister

insists the government will serve out its full term until 2013.

democracy, we are in a transition. Ups and downs will be there. Yes,

we had a bumpy flight but we will land in a nice way. Aren't you

having a real crisis now with the army? Open speculation of a coup.

would not say crisis, no. A difference of opinion. You can't

say there is a distress going on. That we are not on the same page.

Why are their statement between you and the army so hostile? I think

everybody has a right to explain their position so let's put it in

the normal way. Do you think this government will be in position next

week? I say, in the 2013. Pakistan's Interior Minister is

sending a message that the tension can be diffused and he is adamant

the government will survive, but with the army and government

engaging in Opal verbal warfare, some here are writing of this

administration and are predicting Inside Parliament, an impassioned

speech from Prime Minister Gilani. We have made mistakes, he said.

That doesn't mean a democracy should survive. If the worst comes

to the worst, we will go before the Are the army is on the warpath

because of a memo sent to the Americans last May. Asking for help

to rein in the generals. Pakistan's president of denies he was behind

it. The tanks have not been sent in this time. But experts believe the

army will try to get the government out by other means. Pakistan

Supreme Court might do the job for it. It could disqualify the Prime

Minister over a long-running corruption case. Judges will

consider that on Monday. Joining me now from Oxford is

Professor Ifitikhar Malik, a leading analyst on Pakistani

politics. Collision course clearly between the ruling party and the

military. Do you suppose that we are talking about a true

confrontation here? I think there is an element of confrontation but

I don't think there will be a military coup. The army generals

Pope control Pakistan for most of its history, will try to neutralise

opposition through their own technical weaknesses which are

exposed when Osama bin Laden was murdered. And Iran incident

happened, near the Pakistani naval base. And it became a vulnerable to

attack from the Libyans. And politicians in the government will

try to assert their authority, their control over a military

institution, so there have been imbalances within Pakistan, the

military has been calling the shots. The military does not want to take

the back seat now. Politicians have of course made mistakes, but sadly,

in Pakistan history, which is repeated, I think all the three

major institutions, judiciary, army and the government, have to cool

down the Temmerman, sit back and develop a consensus. We have a vote

of confidence next week. The likely it is early elections.

possibility is the opposition will come around to support the

Government because if this government goes, the People's Party

goes, the opposition will also go in the sense that the military will

then commander position and then it might be another few years before

another political government is established, so politics will be

the loser and the judiciary, and the media and civil society will be

losers, so let's hope history does not repeat itself. Let the system

work, let the system and rectify its own problems. And that the

politicians sit together and resolve these issues through the

parliament. And I think the judiciary should other politicians

resolve this conflict. Thank you very much. The Nigerian government

says its maiden of the to the trade unions after five days of strikes

over the scrapping of a petrol subsidy. The protests have been

suspended for two days to allow more talks with the government.

Tens of thousands of Nigerians have come out in protest since Monday

after the removal of the fuel subsidy led to petrol prices more

than doubling. Mike Wooldridge looks at the challenges facing the

government of President Goodluck Jonathan.

The immediate crisis is over the price of fuel. Nigerians are

protesting against the removal of subsidies that at long kept prices

low. The savings intended for badly needed road improvement and other

public projects. But prices more than doubled overnight. Leading

other costs to soar, as well. For many people, it's the last straw

for the fuel subsidy represent a contribution to daily lives in a

very difficult economic situation for a lot of Nigerians. Removing

the subsidy is something which is seen to simply be quite unfair and

it puts pressure on attack situation for Nigerians. But these

protests come amid an even more serious crisis once again

highlighted the North-South divide. In Africa's most populous nation.

This is the leader of a radical Islamist groups, with its roots in

the Muslim north. Its actions have led some Christians in the north to

flee southwards to where Christians are in the majority. They are

attacking and trying to provoke a tension between Muslims and

Christians for that they have recently attacked churches, killing

Christians for the as falling to Al-Qaeda, I don't think they have

got a link. But I think it is very convenient for them and the

government to claim that there is a link. A politically orchestrated

violence is nothing new but over the last year, and rest has focused

on the North Pole. These are the places where the group has carried

out attacks and amid growing concerns about retaliation,

violence has occurred in the south. Five people were killed in a mosque.

New troubles all round for a nation that wants to be recognised for its

huge economic potential, not least because of its oil. Nigeria has

been pushed to the brink many times I have been joined in the studio by

the Nigerian novelist and journalist, Mohammed Umar. These

talks going on between the trade unions and the government, do you

think we're going to see some kind of compromise emerged, that the

government will have to shift a bit? I don't think so. I think this

is the mother of all deadlocks. For the first time in history we have a

position where the majority of the people are saying they don't like

what is happening and the government is digging in. Even if,

assuming that the Trade Union Congress and the Nigerian Labour

Congress agree to one or two things come with the government, I don't

think the mass protest will stop, so it is one thing for the trade

union representatives to agree with the government, it is another thing

for the people on the ground to stop protesting because if people

started protesting before the trade union representatives took over the

leadership. And the person taking the flak, very much President

Goodluck Jonathan. They have even taken to calling him back look

Jennison in Nigeria. Yes, it is rather unfortunate but someone has

to take the blame. The level of corruption in Nigeria is

unbelievable and it is not the corruption, it is the weird is

displayed. There is no shame in the way they display the corruption.

For example in the 2012 budget they said they would allocate 6.5

million for food, for the President and the Vice President. It is

obscene. So this is tapping into that is content. If the instability

were to get further out of hand, could the army moving? That is an

option, and dangerous scenario because something has to be done.

Whatever happens in Nigeria will not remain in Nigeria. It is a big

country, it cannot afford to fail. 150 million people, something has

to be done to stabilise the situation. Mohammed Umar, thank you

for coming to talk to us about the situation in your native Nigeria.

Staying in Africa, in South Sudan, dozens of people are still being

killed in tribal clashes and thousands are being displayed --

displaced in the latest violence more than 50 people, mostly women

and children, were killed on Wednesday in continuing tit-for-tat

attacks and cattle raids between the Lou Nuer and Murle people in

the state of Jonglei. Many people have fled the violence and are in

urgent need of humanitarian assistance. We report from

neighbouring nine -- neighbouring Nairobi.

These are the people caught in the middle of South Sudan's cycle of

violence, slowly returning home after fleeing for their lives when

the tribe burnt their homes and stole their cattle. The aid

agencies are left to pick up the pieces but with an estimated 60,000

people living in camps or hiding in the bush, officials admit they are

struggling to cope. Today we are operating four helicopters taking

food into Gumarok, Tibor, to assist the population. It is not enough.

We need more and much bigger helicopters that will be able to do

this more efficiently. Ethnic tensions over cattle and territory

in the region have existed for decades but the most recent

violence started last August when Murle fighters raided Lou Nuer

villages, killing 600 people, abducting children and stealing

25,000 cattle. The lunar and retaliated in late December and

early January with as many as 6,000 men attacking the main Murle town

of Tibor. Extra UN peacekeepers and soldiers were rushed to the Urdd --

to the area and it was declared a disaster zone. In the latest

attacks the Murle struck back, raising -- raiding Lou Nuer

villages killing at least 50 people and making off with thousands of

cattle. All the violence is happening in a country which is

just six months old. There was euphoria in March in South Sudan

when it broke away from the north after years of civil war but it was

a messy divorce and coursed tension with the North, which still exists,

mainly over territory, division of money. The government of South

Saddam must work hard to avoid a return to civil war but it must

build bridges between the rival ethnic groups to keep this fragile

country together -- South Sudan. The Chinese speaking world is

gearing up for major political change this year. More than 60

years on from the civil war that split China and Taiwan, both are

facing leadership changes. In the autumn China will see its Communist

Party select a new generation of leaders behind closed doors but

just 100 miles offshore, Taiwan holds open and democratic elections

this weekend. Many in China are watching closely as Damian

Grammaticas reports from the Taiwanese capital, Taipei.

Soaring above Taipei, the second tallest building in the world,

built to put Taiwan, so long overshadowed by China, on the map.

Today, its observatory is full of Chinese tourists. Curious about

this island their country claims. Today, what they see is this, and

noisy campaign, democracy happening in the Chinese world just 100 miles

from China's shores. TRANSLATION: I have seen many banners and flags.

It looks really interesting. We don't have anything like this in

China. Taiwan has only just begun welcoming Chinese tourists after

decades of separation. Two million came last year. This is Asia's

biggest store. Christian Dior is building the biggest store in the

world here, targeting the visitors and China's new spending power.

Taiwan's president says the island has to open to China, to recognise

its economic rise. He has made ending decades of its hostility his

priority. What is the importance of that, of building closer relations

with China? Peace, peace. PCS says, and prosperity. But at what price?

The rise of China is leading to some really difficult questions for

Taiwan. Does this island have any choice but to hitch its economic

future to its giant neighbour? Well that ensure Taiwan's continued

prosperity, or will it threatened the island's hard-won freedoms?

Taiwan's opposition fears China could dominate Taiwan, threaten its

democracy. China is a source of uncertainties for the region and

for Taiwan as well. Since the civil war split, the two have taken very

different paths. China insists it will take Taiwan by force if

necessary. In China the political system remains frozen. President Hu

Jintao will this way -- will this year make way for a new Communist

leader to be chosen by the party in secret. But can Taiwan influence

China? Yes, it can, says this man, who did -- Hutu decades ago was a

leader of the pro-democracy demonstrations in Tiananmen Square.

I have been hearing this so much from Chinese tourists, who say when

will the day come for us so that we can choose? -- our own leaders?

Communist Party says China is not ready or suited for democracy.

Taiwan hopes its example can prove otherwise. Many here fear the

independence they now enjoy could be crushed asked China rises.

It was supposed to be heading to Mars to take rock samples from one

of the Red Planet's moons but some time this weekend the Russian

spacecraft -- spacecraft Phobos- Grunt is expected to come crashing

back to earth following a serious malfunction. No one knows when it

will return, or more importantly, where it will hit, but its imminent

re-entry has highlighted the increasing danger of space debris

as undersides correspondent David Shukman reports. -- as a science

correspondent reports. A swarm of dots circling the Earth,

15,002 are all rockets and other junk. An orbiting rubbish dump

created after half-a-century of space flight. Last November a

Russian launch added yet another piece of debris. The mission was

meant to fly to Mars. We did get off the ground but something went

wrong and now the Russians believe their spacecraft will crash back

into the Indian Ocean. But no one can be sure. From experience it is

difficult, almost impossible at this stage, to predict exactly when

and where the object will come in. To be able to say at this stage you

have to control the aircraft and we don't believe they have control of

it. So what will happen to the spacecraft? It is orbiting every 90

minutes between 51 degrees north and 51 degrees south, so it could

land anywhere in between, most likely in the ocean. But the zone

just includes southern England below the M4 corridor. Most of the

spacecraft will burn up as it falls to earth but some components matter

more than others. The tanks, filled with fuel for the long journey to

Mars, should leak and burn off long before they reach the surface. The

moment European spacecraft blew up while falling to earth. This was

meant to happen and generally there is very little risk to anyone on

the ground. The bigger danger is space junk damaging the satellites

that we depend on. Anything, even as small as a cherry, going up

17,500 miles an hour, which they are going around in orbit, but can

be similar to an explosion of a hand grenade right next to your

satellites and even a small pieces caused problems. The Russian

spacecraft was designed to land on Bob Ross, and of Mars. -- on Phobos.

It would have been a scientific triumph. Instead the world is now

waiting for a crash. Let's hope that debris lands in the

ocean. Now the main stories, which has

been confirmed. While we have been on air. The French Finance Minister

has confirmed that his country has lost its triple-A credit rating,

the Standard and Poor's agency has cut fans's rating by an entire

point to just do Belem. -- France. The finance minister has said there

will be no new austerity measures despite the downgrade. Very

disappointing news for France, Justin. Next, the weather. From me,

Zeinab Badawi, goodbye and enjoy Hello, you got the idea today. Keep

the thought in your head. It is the sort of weather we will get through

the weekend. A widespread frost tonight but tomorrow the first

lifts and we will get spells of bright winter sunshine in most

areas. High pressure dominating the scene across the UK, keeping the

mild Atlantic air at bay. It will be the case over the weekend and

into the early part of next week. The frost clears. There will be fog

which will take a little time to clear that it should eventually go.

Patchy cloud at times in the west of the UK but across northern

England and the eastern side of England, long spells of sunshine

into the afternoon. Not particularly warm. Six Celsius in

London, near the January average. More of a breeze across south-west

London -- across south-west England and Wales, just drifting some cloud

through. Keeping temperatures higher, seven or eight Celsius.

Across mid-Wales, temperatures stay below freezing. The Northern

Ireland, not a bad day, the cloud will break up to allow spells of

sunshine through but the breeze will make it feel chilly, coming in

from the south-east. Six Celsius. Cloud across western Scotland and

across the higher ground temperatures remaining below